The Eighth Wonder
by Faceless Emmy
Summary: Post-canon Coven. Misty is stuck in hell, but not for the reason you'd expect. Once she's back, she discovers she has a gift that has never been seen before. Zoe faces tragedy, Cordelia comes to terms with her desires and Queenie uncovers a secret about her past. Misty may live, but only death may pay for life... Bensay, Spenson, eventual Foxxay, Queenie/OC, Misty/OC, OC/OC
1. Zoe I

Zoe's eyes snapped open to the sight of the harsh white ceiling of a classroom. Jars lined the room, each containing a dead frog, spindly limbs stretched out as if they were flailing to escape. Children sat at the desks, each working at a frog with a scalpel. Strangely, no posters or crude depictions of atoms plastered the walls like most science classroom walls, which gave the room the bleak air of a clinic or a surgery. _A dream, _Zoe thought. She had always been able to tell dreams from reality. She was also good at manipulating her dreams to her advantage. Lucid dreaming was the most common power in witches, but most people who had it didn't develop any other powers, so they thought nothing of it.

A teacher paced around the classroom. He walked with an air self importance and his eyes glinted with malice. It was evident that the children feared him, as whenever he walked behind one of them, the child would stop what they were doing as if they were expecting criticism, not quite daring to look at him. None of them seemed to notice Zoe, who was quite out of place among the twelve-year-olds. _  
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The first thing Zoe noticed was the full grown girl sitting on the other side of the room, her hair a mess of wild blonde curls. She wore a long, ruffled dress of black lace and a floral shawl draped around her shoulders. Silver rings adorned her fingers, which were clasped around her frog. _Misty. _

Suddenly, the boy sat opposite Misty raised his head. "Mr Cringley, she did it again!" he shouted, before smirking at her. The frog that was under her hands hopped around the desk. Zoe ran over to Misty, shouting her name.

"Zoe!" the older girl grasped Zoe's arms, her face wet with tears and terror displayed in her blue-green eyes. "How did you get here?!"

"Misty, where-" Zoe started.

"If you won't dissect a dead frog," the teacher interrupted as he strode towards them, "you will dissect a live one."

Misty pulled Zoe closer to her, "Zoe, please! Don't let him make me do it again! Please, Zoe!" the older witch pleaded, her eyes wide with fear. _He's going to make her kill the frog, _Zoe thought. She reached her hand out to grab it, but her hand went straight through. She tried again, but she ended up with her arm through the desk and her hand underneath. _What the-? _"Please don't make me kill a living thing!" Misty cried, tears forming in her eyes. She continued to plead, but the teacher forced the scalpel into her hand and pulled her arm down over the frog, dissecting it. Misty wailed, her eyes squeezed shut. The teacher's body tensed in excitement at her anguish; he clearly enjoyed this.

Zoe saw red. _He's a fucking sadist. _She reached out to grab his arm, but the room's strange physics acted again and she stumbled through him, feeling an odd crushing sensation as the two briefly occupied the same space. She fell on her backside, shaking her head in bewilderment.

As soon as the teacher started to walk away, Misty placed her hands on the frog again. When it hopped back to life, the same boy as before raised his head again. "Mr Cringley, she did it again!"

_It's happening again, _Zoe thought. _What _is _this? _

"Zoe!" Misty wailed again, "help me, please!"

"Misty I can't!" Zoe shouted back, "I can't touch anything, my hand goes straight through it!" Tears pricked her eyes, "I'm sorry, Misty!"

Zoe bolted upright in her bed just as the first rays of sun shone through the academy window. "What the _fuck _was that?!" she said aloud, although she knew. _Hell. Her hell. _She curled up in a ball and sobbed. "She's there forever...because of me," she finished with a whisper. Guilt stabbed at Zoe as she rocked back and forth on her bed, remembering...

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_"Thunder only happens when it's rainin'" _Misty sung in her low, crooning voice. Her hips swung in a rhythmic motion as she stirred the dark pink potion in the bowl. Zoe watched her with hunger. For the last few days, she'd had an overwhelming attraction to the older girl, and it scared her. Zoe had never been into girls before, and this didn't feel the same as when she liked a guy. She craved Misty's touch and comfort, wanting nothing more than to curl up in her arms and kiss her, letting the older witch do with her as she pleased.

"Can you give me a hand, Zoe?" Misty asked as she lifted her eyes to meet Zoe's gaze. They stood with their eyes locked for an uncomfortably long second and Zoe felt herself starting to melt. She dropped her gaze and mumbled, "uh, yeah. Of course."

"Crush up the ginseng and the damiana in that bowl will ya?" Misty asked. Zoe nodded and began crushing the herbs.

They worked silently, Zoe sneaking glances at Misty at every opportunity. She occasionally caught Misty doing the same and both girls would look down, embarrassed. After a few minutes, Misty broke the silence.

"How're things goin' with Kyle?" she asked.

Zoe inwardly sighed at the sound of the older girl's voice, "well...um, good, I suppose..." she answered, "it's great to be able to live with him. You know, he's always there, so we can spend loads of time together."

The older witch smirked, "and what about when you're _spending time together, _hmm?" she asked.

Zoe wasn't sure how to answer. Lately, the only person she could imagine being in bed with was Misty. Her heart was pounding, but she acted comfortable. They were only friends talking about girly things, Misty would know something was up if she started acting awkward. "I'm glad my powers don't work on Kyle," she answered, "that would make things harder."

The older witch smiled and nodded, "that's a great help, I guess." She turned to look at Zoe, "what's it like? When you..." a blush began to rise on Misty's cheeks.

"When I what?" Zoe asked.

"Ya know..." Misty's face was now a similar colour to the potion she was mixing herbs into, "do it. Have sex."

Zoe's heart beat fast. _She's so adorable._ "It's...painful at first, but you get used to it," Zoe tried to be as vague as she could with her answers; she didn't want to accidentally say something she shouldn't. "Kyle's nervous though, he never...um..._finishes._"

"What's that mean?" Misty asked, eyebrows raised in innocent curiosity.

_Damn, of course she doesn't know, _Zoe thought, _how do I put this? _"It never lasts very long before he pulls- _stops _doing it."

Misty blushed beet red, "I think some of this potion could help you guys. It's an aphrodisiac. It'll increase your..._desire_ for each other."

"Thanks, Misty" Zoe smiled.

The older witch closed her eyes and began saying an incantation over the mixture. Zoe's eyes wandered up her flawless body, taking in her long, slender legs, her corseted waist, her perfect breasts. She stopped on Misty's cupid's bow lips, noticing their every movement as they formed the sacred words. Zoe imagined pressing her own lips against them, running her hands through that wild hair...she looked away just in time for Misty to open her eyes.

"We should try some first," Misty said. She looked at the floor, nervous, "ya know, just to see if it works. Ah'm kinda new at incantations."

Zoe simply nodded, and swallowed a spoonful of the potion. She winced; the potion tasted surprisingly sweet, but very spicy. Misty did the same, fanning her mouth with her hand in an attempt to put out the non-existent flames. For a long while, Zoe felt nothing. She was about to make an excuse to go back inside when she felt Misty's hands on her waist. Her heart fluttered. _I should go, _she thought. _I should go _right now, _and forget that ever happened. _Instead, she found herself turning round and kissing the older girl on her perfect lips. She closed her eyes, savouring the amazing feeling. Her head spun with the ecstasy of knowing she was loved, she was safe. Before long, she felt Misty countering her movements with her own and slender hands stroking her thighs. The older witch lurched forward in passion and lifted Zoe up onto the botany table.

"Misty-" Zoe started.

"Shhh..." Misty placed a finger on Zoe's lips and pushed a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. The younger girl closed her eyes, and felt Misty's lips, eager on her own. She leaned back, sighing into the kiss and allowing Misty's tongue to penetrate her mouth. Zoe broke the kiss, and ghosted her lips along the older girl's jawbone, shivering at the beautiful sound of her sighs. She felt Misty's hand groping the neckline of her top. The older witch pressed her lips to the top of Zoe's breasts, and the younger girl felt a warm pulse hit her in her core as the hungry lips kissed every inch of her cleavage. Without thinking, she pulled Misty's hand between her legs and softly groaned as the older girl began rubbing her. Zoe soon felt a wetness between her legs. The older girl placed one last kiss on the Zoe's breasts, pulled off the younger witch's top and slipped her hands inside her bra. The younger girl moaned, she didn't know how much more she could take. Her hands responded by pulling down Misty's dress and unlacing the small corset around her waist. The older witch didn't resist as Zoe skillfully unclasped her bra and paused, taking in Misty's small put perfectly formed breasts. She swirled her tongue around a pebbled nipple. Misty groaned loudly, her hands digging in to the younger witch's bare shoulders as an outlet for her passion. That was the last straw for Zoe and she let out a half scream, half sigh as her orgasm racked her body, sending a violent shiver all the way down her. Zoe moved on to the other breast while she fondled the first one. After a moment trying to contain herself, Misty shouted out, the feeling of Zoe's mouth on her breasts sending her over the edge. The older girl yanked down the rest of her dress and let it fall to the floor next the Zoe's leggings and top. She took off her pants and stood before the younger girl.

"Misty, you're beautiful" Zoe gasped. Misty's small breasts were complimented by her long, narrow waist, which tapered out to round hips. Between the older girl's legs were a mess of light brown curls, similar to the ones on her head. Zoe looked on as Misty pulled herself onto the table and slowly spread her legs, her mouth hanging slightly open to allow for her heavy breaths. Zoe crawled towards her and pushed her head between the older witch's legs. She was surprised to find Misty's centre was quite dry, obviously exhausted by the older girl's orgasm. Zoe lapped at Misty eagerly, desperate for the taste of her, the feeling of her, everything about her. The younger witch soon felt herself getting wetter in response to Misty's cries of pleasure. She pulled her head away and sat up, Misty eventually following.

"My turn" Zoe all but whispered. She pulled off her panties and spread her legs for Misty. Zoe's vagina wasn't bare, but she trimmed the hair there regularly so it didn't show when she went swimming. Misty seemed confused at Zoe's lack of pubic hair, furrowing her brow as she leaned into the younger girl's crotch. Zoe felt the older girl's tongue penetrate her, sliding in almost as deep as Kyle went. _Kyle. _Zoe's nights with him a distant memory now she was feeling what she did. Misty's tongue was out now, and she teased at Zoe's entrance with two fingers. She pushed all the way in and shifted her fingers around inside, trying to find a good position. The movement triggered a second orgasm from Zoe, this time eliciting a louder scream. She felt Misty's fingers curl and pull out, leaving a strange, satisfied feeling inside her. The older witch lay down next to her and they fell asleep, Zoe's head resting on Misty's chest.

Zoe's eyes flickered open and focussed on the sunlight dappled floor of the greenhouse. Relishing in the peacefulness of the scene, she stretched forward. Suddenly, she felt the hand on her breast. _Misty's hand. Oh _shit! The memories of the night before flooded back to her. She jumped off the botany table, pulled on her clothes and hurried into the academy, leaving Misty sleeping naked in the greenhouse.

Zoe went away with Kyle for five days, the comforting familiarity of his presence grounding her, a welcome break from the chaos that was consuming everything else. Her attraction to Misty dissipated as quickly as it had formed, causing Zoe no end of confusion. She wanted to avoid Misty for the rest of their lives, but she had to talk to her about what happened.

Zoe returned the day before the Seven Wonders. She was immediately swept up in the fight between Misty and Madison, then the Axeman showing up. It was evening before she could talk to Misty in private. She found the older girl sitting cross legged on her bed, eyes closed as she hummed along to "Edge of Seventeen". Zoe knocked on the open door.

"Misty?" Her voice was shaky. Misty's eyes brimmed and she jumped up, wrapping Zoe in an uncomfortably tight hug and burying her face in Zoe's hair.

"I missed you Zoe", she kissed the younger girl's cheek. "I understand why you had to go, Fiona wanted to kill you." Zoe felt the older witch's hands slide down her arms, "but she's gone, Zoe, she's gone, and I always knew we were meant for each other. That feeling I got before I found you, when I was meditating in the wood, it was love. I know that now. Now we can tell them Zoe, we can tell everyone about us and whoever's the supreme will pass the Seven Wonders and everything will be over. We can all be happy."

Zoe's heart broke as she pulled away from Misty's grip. "I'm so sorry this happened Misty," she started.

"What-what are you talking about Zoe? There's nothing to be sorry about." Misty's eyes widened in her fear and confusion.

"Whatever happened that night, it was weird. I don't know what it was. I was attracted to you and I don't know why, but I'm with Kyle. I love Kyle." Misty's hands shook as she put two and two together. "You're an amazing, talented, kind, beautiful witch and one of the people I trust most in this world. But I don't love you. I'm sorry, Misty."

Misty wailed and sank down to the floor. That was how Zoe left her on the night of the Seven Wonders. Curled up on the floor. Alone and in tears. Weak when she most needed strength.


	2. Queenie I

The morning council meeting had been even more dull than it normally was. Miss Robichaux's had thousands of applicants, and the council were trying to establish a system to test whether or not they were real witches. Queenie had a short attention span, and the rest of the council never seemed to like her ideas anyway, so she often found herself incredibly bored. They'd settled on bringing each applicant in for an interview where she could demonstrate her powers before she could be accepted into the academy. Cordelia had originally been opposed to the idea, saying it was "wrong" to reject girls who only wanted to join their sister witches. Queenie had to remind her several times that if the girls weren't witches at all, they would have no place and no purpose at the academy.

Queenie sighed and shifted in her seat, her eyes wandering over to where Zoe sat, tense and unusually quiet.

"What's up, Zoe?" she asked. Zoe didn't respond. "Zoe!" Queenie pinched her own backside and Zoe yelped. "What's up with you? You've hardly said anything all morning."

"Sorry," Zoe looked down nervously. "I saw something in my sleep last night. I saw Misty, and she spoke to me."

Cordelia smiled sympathetically. "I know it must be hard for you to lose her, Zoe. You've coped amazingly well, seeing as you were especially close friends with her." Zoe flinched at the last statement. "It's totally normal for you to dream about her sometimes." Queenie inwardly rolled her eyes. Cordelia's heart was in the right place, but she wasn't the brightest penny in the box, so she often ended up making things worse.

"No, it wasn't like that. This wasn't a dream, I always know when I'm dreaming," Zoe furrowed her brow in her attempt to explain, "this was vivid. It was real, but I wasn't."

"Say what?" Queenie asked.

Zoe put her hands to her head, like she was trying to physically organise her thoughts. "I could only touch the walls and the floor, everything else just passed through me, like I was a ghost. No-one could see or hear me either, no-one but Misty."

Cordelia leaned forward, intrigued. "What happened in the dream?" she asked.

"Well, it was a classroom, a science classroom. There were kids sitting at the tables and Misty was sitting with them. They were dissecting frogs. Misty kept ressurecting her frog, and the teacher made her kill it, over and over again." Zoe's eyes were brimming. "I tried to stop it, but I couldn't touch anything. I couldn't help her," her voice broke and a tear rolled down her cheek. "It was her hell. I'm sure."

Queenie was silent, perplexed. How could Misty possibly contact Zoe from hell, bring her into hell, then return her safely? _She was probably forced back by the sunrise. _Queenie was very clever. She always had an answer, and hated the rare occasions when she didn't.

"It makes so much sense." Cordelia looked up as if she'd seen an angel. _Bitch__ actually got an answer for once, _Queenie smiled to herself.

"How?" Zoe asked.

"The realm we access during Descensum is not, in fact, the afterlife. I was confused, but now it all fits."

"Yes, and...?" Queenie urged her on.

"When I went to my hell, I was blind. I expected to be able to see, since the afterlife shouldn't be subject to the restrictions of the body, but when I got there, I was still blind. I never went to the afterlife in the first place." Cordelia paused to check the girls were following, "Misty isn't dead."

Queenie frowned, "but we saw her, her body disintegrated in your arms. We're still finding bits of ash in the carpet. How can she be alive if she doesn't have a body?" She didn't like being the one asking the questions. Queenie didn't like depending on someone to answer her, or to do anything for her for that matter. Growing up in the care system, she'd learned that the only person she could truly trust with anything was herself.

They all sat silently for a while, contemplating the question. After a short time, Queenie spoke up again.

"Unless she's in a place between life and death. Maybe Descensum is like a trial period between the two, and you only really die if you stay there too long. You guys ever heard of Purgatory?" She sat back, satisfied that she was on top of the situation.

Cordelia stared hard at nothing. "Why is she still there?" she asked, not taking her eyes off the invisible point. "Why did she not die when her time ran out?"

"Misty knew a lot about life and death, with her resurgence," Zoe replied. "I remember something she said to me, when we were bringing Madison back. She said "_there's too much death inside of_ _her_." Life and death are forces, and Misty understood that." The others nodded, intrigued by her idea. "Misty's powers got stronger the more she used them. At first she could only bring back little animals, now she can bring back alligators and human beings. I think whenever she uses her Resurgence, her life force gets stronger..."

"...so she's building up her life force by bringing that frog back" Queenie finished. "She has so much life inside her that death can't fully enter her and take her to the afterlife!"

Cordelia gasped. "If she's strong enough to contact Zoe, maybe we can get her out of there. But I need to check something first." She opened her laptop and began to rapidly type. She nodded and smiled as she read what was on the screen. "You're right, girls. On all of the recorded instances where a witch has been stuck in Descensum, then contacted the living, the witch has had the power of resurgence. Normally, souls that go to hell will pass on after a while, but witches with resurgence have a life force so strong that it and death cancel each other out. Misty isn't going anywhere until we get her out of that place."

Queenie slammed her hand on the table. "Then let's get her out."


	3. Cordelia I

There it was again. _What _is _that? _Cordelia pulled her pillow over her ear. She'd heard the noise every night for a week now, ever since the Seven Wonders. It was a thin, weak wailing sound, so Cordelia originally thought it was just the wind whistling through the building. _But there's no wind tonight, _she thought. She climbed out of bed and creeped down the hall, trying to listen for the source of the noise. She checked if it was Queenie or Zoe, they were both quietly sleeping. She searched the whole floor, nothing. _It had better not be _another _spirit. _

The attic was dark. Cordelia fumbled around for the light switch, finding nothing. She sighed and stepped off the ladder. If_ only there was a kinesis for electricity... _She heard the noise again, louder this time. Whatever it was, it was definitely in there somewhere. Cordelia found what felt like a chest. She found the lid and lifted it. Inside was a small writhing figure, dressed in what felt like a lace dress.

"A baby," Cordelia whispered. Her heart fluttered, she was so close to what she wanted so badly. _Marie Laveau's baby, _she thought. Since Marie Laveau had gone, there had been no sign of the baby, so had assumed someone had taken it back to the hospital. Cordelia wondered who put the baby in the chest. Whoever it was must have been taking care of her all this time, she looked well-fed and clean. They also would have some reason to dress her as a doll. _So Spalding's still hanging around. _She lifted the crying baby out of the chest and carried her back to her bedroom.

"Ssh," Cordelia held the baby to her chest and rocked slowly. "You're safe now," the baby stopped crying and fell asleep, breathing into Cordelia. Cordelia closed her eyes and let the built up tears trickle down her cheeks. This is what she lived for, the feeling of a tiny human being that needed her, that loved her. Everything faded, her mother's contempt, Hank's betrayal, the world's expectations of her, none of it mattered. Right here, right now, this baby could be hers. All she cared about was the tiny breaths, the delicate little hands. As long as she held her here, Cordelia was a mother. That was all she needed.

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"Hello? This is Cordelia Goode. Who's speaking?" Cordelia was on edge today. She had to keep checking on the the baby, and she couldn't let any of the girls find out. They would take her back to her parents, and Cordelia couldn't handle that.

"This is Sharon Anders, Madison Montgomery's agent. We can't get hold of her, she's not answering her phone. Is she there? Could you ask her if I can speak with her?" The woman sounded worried, her nervousness wearing away at her business-like tone.

"Umm...no. She's not here. Madison left Miss Robichaux's academy about a week ago. She seemed quite angry, I thought she would have gone to you." _Shit_. Where had that girl gone? Cordelia hoped bratty actress hadn't done anything stupid, although she knew she probably had.

"Oh. She definitely didn't report a change in her address, as is our policy, so we always know where our actors are. If she...can't be found, there will be legal repercussions for you, as you're the last one who saw her."

Cordelia wasn't in the mood for any shit today. "What are you implying? That I kidnapped her?"

The woman sighed, "Ms Goode, Madison Montgomery is worth millions. She's on a contract, and that contract can't be broken. If we lose her, we'll also lose a lot of money, and whoever is responsible for her disappearance will need to pay that lot of money."

Cordelia took a deep breath. She wasn't going to win a legal battle, so she decided to be co-operative. "Okay, I'll ask around." She hung up.

Cordelia fell back on the sofa and put her head in her hands. _It's all supposed to be easy now, _she thought, _I thought the hard stuff was over._ She looked up at the glass vase on the sunny spot on the mantelpiece, filled with the ashes of the peaceful witch that had left her so tragically. She longed to hear her happy laugh and watch her dance to Stevie Nicks in that trance-like state the music put her in, twirling and swaying as if no-one was watching her. "Why you, Misty?" Cordelia said to the ashes, "if anyone doesn't deserve to be trapped in hell, it's you." She curled up around the vase and let sorrow rack her body, her sobs echoing through the room and tears soaking the sofa cushion. She kissed the vase and put it back in the sun. "I will save you Misty, just hang in there a little longer while I figure out how."

Cordelia hadn't told anyone, or fully accepted it herself, but ever since she'd lain her hand on Misty's arm and seen her extraordinary past, she'd loved her. She loved the sparkle in her eyes, her childlike innocence and how she ignited when she felt passionately about something. In such a short time, Misty had come to mean so much to Cordelia. She loved Misty, and she would save her or die trying.

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That night, Cordelia decided to go to bed early. She finished off the last of her paperwork and headed upstairs. As she approached her bedroom, she heard someone moving around inside. _The baby. _Cordelia flung the door open to see Spalding standing over the makeshift cot, a smile on his face. He slowly raised his head and smirked at her. _  
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"I see you've taken great care of my living doll, Miss Cordelia. If you want to borrow her again, please ask me first. I was worried sick about my little beauty." He tickled the baby's cheek and she giggled.

Cordelia flung her arm forward to smack Spalding against the wall. Nothing. She tried again. Still nothing._ He's a spirit._ In her rage, she'd forgotten that her telekinesis didn't work on ghosts.

_"Vade, et revetere in terram,"_ said a voice from the doorway. Spalding vanished. Cordelia sighed in relief.

"Thank you, Zoe."

Zoe smiled, and placed her hand on Cordelia shoulder. "That's okay, I saw him go in there a while ago, I was looking for the spell in the spell books."

"I- don't know what's wrong with me lately. I haven't felt up to anything, really. What with the new students and Misty being gone and Myrtle, and now your dream. I'm sorry, you deserve a better supreme." Cordelia held back tears for the millionth time that day.

"That's not a true, Cordelia. In fact, you were the supreme long before Fiona got sick," Zoe reassured. "But you need to take that baby back to its parents."

Cordelia nodded. "I will."


	4. Zoe II

"Goodnight, beautiful," Zoe felt Kyle's hand rub up and down her side.

"Night," she replied, mindful of how distant she sounded. She had so much on her mind, and she's been abrupt with him lately. _Poor Kyle, _she thought. _None of this shit is his fault. _Kyle's hand moved forward to the side of her breast. She jerked away as memories of her night with Misty came flooding back.

"Whoa," Kyle took his hands off her. "I'm sorry." Zoe looked into his eyes, then quickly dropped her gaze. She couldn't bear to look in his eyes after what she'd done with Misty. _There's no excuse. I'm a filthy, lying cheater and I don't deserve him. _Kyle was unaware of what had happened on the botany table, and his kind smile told Zoe that the knowledge would break his heart.

She placed her hand on top of his, "it's not you, Kyle," she forced herself to look into his eyes, "it's everything. I would tell you, but..." she trailed off.

"Witch stuff?" he asked, with that trusting expression that pulled Zoe's heart the hardest.

"Yeah," she replied, grateful for Kyle's naïvety. She turned away, then asked "can you hold me tonight? It's just, I'm afraid to sleep because- because-" She'd seen Misty one more time since her first visit to hell. Misty remembered her from the last time, but her anguish had not subsided. Zoe knew she had to, but she didn't want to go there again.

Kyle pulled her into a gentle embrace. "Of course. I love you, Zoe."

"I love you too, Kyle."

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The same bleak walls as before greeted Zoe. The same frightened children and stink of death filled the room. Misty still sat with her eyes closed and her whole body rigid as she was forced to dissect the frog. The striking difference was that another person stood next to Misty. She was dressed in a bright blue lace dress and her long brown hair fell loose down her back. Suddenly, she span around and gasped as she noticed Zoe.

"Zoe?! What are you doing here?!" she shouted. "You're not supposed to be here!"

Zoe quickly stood up. "Nan, I-" she started, but there was no need to explain herself to the clairvoyant.

"She brought you here. But how? She's not supposed to be able to! She's not supposed to even be here!" Nan had always been easily flustered.

"How are you here, Nan? You died, Papa Legba took you."

Nan took a deep breath. "Things are different with Papa. I can be with Luke, he lets me go wherever I want. Sometimes I do jobs for him, he says it's useful to have a witch with Salem powers." Nan pointed to Misty, "she's here way longer than she should be."

"It's because of her resurgence. Her life force is too strong for death to claim her."

"How did you know that?"

"We worked it out, Misty's not going anywhere, unless she comes back with us." Zoe's thoughts flickered back to her night with Misty, bringing up vivid memories of the hungry kisses and rough, desperate touching, and..._oh shit. _

Nan's eyes went wide, then she covered her mouth with her hand, then she laughed. "Oh, Zoe! I did not know you were a _lesbian._" She said the last word as an eight-year-old would enlighten her friend about the birds and the bees.

"No, I'm not. It's not like that!" Zoe protested, but Nan was gone before she could continue. _Dammit, it'll be sunrise soon. _She ran over to Misty, holding her head gently as Misty collapsed into her arms. "We can get you out, Misty," she said softly.

"But- but- no-one gets out of hell. I'm here forever, I know it." Misty managed to say in between sobs.

Zoe tilted Misty's head up to face her. "Misty. You can't think that way. You can get out of here. We will get you out as soon as we can, as soon as we figure out how. You hang in here until then." Zoe looked around, unsure of how to continue. She noticed Misty's black, floral shawl and pulled it off her, laying it in front of the crying girl. "You remember when Stevie Nicks gave this to you?"

Misty stifled her sobbing. "Y-yes. It was the best day of my life. Stevie gives me good vibes, wherever I am."

"Then think of Stevie. It'll help you take your mind off the frog."

"I can't think of anything but the frog! I have to save it. Zoe, I'm sorry, I _can't._"

Zoe walked through the table and let Misty curl up into her arms. She ran her fingers though the other girl's curls and felt her sobs vibrate against her chest, stirring her like they were her own. "Hey, what's your favourite Stevie song?"

"Rhiannon," Misty replied without hesitation.

"That's the one Stevie sang with us, right?" Misty nodded. "Sing it with me, Misty."

Misty nodded, and took a deep breath. _"Rhiannon rings like a bell through the night and wouldn't you love to love her?" _Misty's singing was laced with sniffs and sobs, but Zoe's heart swelled at the beauty the sentiment. She was singing in defiance of hell, in spite of everything.

Zoe didn't know the words, but joined is as best she could as Misty sang.

_"Takes to the sky, like a bird in flight and who will be her lover?" _

"Misty," Zoe held the older witch by the shoulders, "I want you to keep singing, okay? Even after I'm gone, just keep singing, whatever happens."

"Okay, Zoe. I promise." Misty closed her eyes as she was forced to hold the scalpel again. _"All your life, you've never-"_

Everything disappeared, and Zoe opened her eyes to the crumpled white sheets on her bed.

llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

Zoe flicked over another page in her magazine. _This is bullshit,_ she thought._ I should really cancel my subscription. _J-14 had kept her occupied when she was twelve, but it just didn't cut it anymore. She heard piano music from downstairs. _Who is that?_ she thought. Cordelia was out shopping and Queenie really wasn't a piano girl.

She crept down the stairs and poked her head around the door frame into the living room. There was Myrtle animatedly playing the piano, eyes closed in her passion for the music. Zoe shook her head,_ does anybody round here stay dead anymore? _

Without opening her eyes, Myrtle patted the seat next to her. "Sit with me dear, we have a lot to discuss." Zoe obliged. _  
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"First of all," Myrtle started, still playing the piano, "please burn those horribly trashy articles." Zoe looked confused. "Your _leggings,_ dear. They are poor excuses for clothing. Worn when one cannot find anything else to go with the top half. The epitome of half-hearted laziness."

Zoe personally thought the leggings looked good with her pink layered top and cardigan, but she kept silent, knowing better than to challenge the eccentric woman.

"I see you're young love is still blossoming, though the flower has become a little...tainted, shall we say." Zoe opened her mouth in alarm, but Myrtle continued. "You probably want to know why I've come to visit you in your mortal world. I've been simply dying to see my dear Cordelia, but this is a time of great importance for her. A visit now may...distract her from the more important tasks at hand."

"You mean Misty?" Zoe asked, wary of how much Myrtle knew - or how much she had seen.

"I do mean Misty Day. You have established that she can be retrieved from her unfortunate situation? That she will not go any further into that world?" Zoe nodded. "But you are short of exactly _how_ to execute this rescue?"

"Yes," Zoe replied. "Do you know how to get her back?"

Myrtle smiled and moved her hand down the piano to play a series of low, dramatic chords. "Alas, not everything about this is clear to me, but I do know that you will need something that will bind the souls of others to yours for a short amount of time, so that you may take them with you to see poor Misty. I know how to make such an elixir."

"Really? How do you know?"

"My dear girl, my soul has been purified in the fires of hell, and there are secrets in the flames. I know more than you would probably want me to."

Zoe blushed, wondering if Myrtle had watched her with Misty. "Misty and I, we-" but Myrtle was gone, leaving only a folder over scrap of paper with "Cordelia" written on it.

This had probably been the strangest day of Zoe's life.

**Hi, I know the chapters are quite short, but I'd much rather update every other day with thousand-word chapters than once a week with four-thousand words. Please review, constructive criticism is very welcome. **

**Thanks, **

**Faceless Emmy**


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